Good 40 s&w 180 plated or cast load

[ericuda]

Son has a m & p 40 and have finally accumulated enough brass to reload. Looking at xtreme 180 fp plated or a mbc bullet but I have no idea what a good powder for the 40 is.

I have cfep, unique, hp38, titegroup, be86, true blue, bullseye and 2400. I know 2400 is out and figure unique has to work but welcome any thoughts and pointers for the gun/bullets.

Thoughts on be86 are appreciated as I have an 8 lb jug barely opened.

 

[Walkalong]

5.0 Grs HP-38. Soft, accurate, fun. Works with plated or coated. haven't tried lead, but would be surprised if it did not do well. I used W-231, but since it is the same thing.

 

[Walkalong]

BE-86, had to look it up, my notes at 6.0 Grs said I was close.

 

[ericuda]

Thx, hp38 is a good plan. Always been good in whatever I used to in.

 

[kcofohio]

Son has a m & p 40 and have finally accumulated enough brass to reload. Looking at xtreme 180 fp plated or a mbc bullet but I have no idea what a good powder for the 40 is.

I have cfep, unique, hp38, titegroup, be86, true blue, bullseye and 2400. I know 2400 is out and figure unique has to work but welcome any thoughts and pointers for the gun/bullets.

Thoughts on be86 are appreciated as I have an 8 lb jug barely opened.

I don't know xteme pricing, but Berry's has a couple different 180 gr. bullets, they're seconds, for just at $100 per 1k. And I believe over $75 spent gets you free shipping.
https://www.berrysmfg.com/category/closeouts/seconds

 

[ericuda]

Kc thx. Xtreme is 53 per 500.

 

[Hoopjj]

My favorite 40 load is 5.6gr cfe pistol with xtreme 180s. Shoots great out of my XDm

 

[mcb]

I like vihtavuori N320 in 40S&W. Cleanest pistol powder I have ever used.

 

[TonyAngel]

With that bullet, WSF and WST were pretty popular with the guys shooting limited with that projectile in .40. It's a good shooting load. I don't know if it will cycle an M&P to your satisfaction though. I THINK those powders are a bit faster than 231, so if those don't work, try 231. Or just go to 231. It's a magic powder and can make stuff that will go bang in almost any handgun caliber. It won't always be the hottest load, but it'll work and shoot pretty soft too, compared to some of the slower powders.

 

[12Bravo20]

I have been using mostly Berry or Rainier plated bullets for all my pistol rounds. They work for me in .380, 9mm, 9mm Largo, .40, and .45.

 

[Trey Veston]

I've used both Unique and Titegroup for .40 S&W match loads. 4.2 grains of Titegroup and can't find my Unique loads. Used 5.7 grains of it in 10mm with outstanding results. 231 has been very accurate.

 

[Walkalong]

I like vihtavuori N320 in 40S&W. Cleanest pistol powder I have ever used.

Very good stuff, love it, but for whatever reason I have never tried it in .40.

 

[ericuda]

Lots of reading. Looks like the 40 will turn out well for me.

 

[mcb]

Very good stuff, love it, but for whatever reason I have never tried it in .40.

For the first 4-5 years I shot USPSA I loaded 5.0gr of N320 under a Montana Gold 180gr CMJ and it made ~171 PF in both my XD-40 Tactical and my S&W 610. Burned many many pounds of N320 and sent hundreds of pounds of brass jacketed bullets down range with it.

 

[Lennyjoe]

I use plated 180’s with Longshot (others call it loud shot) but it’s all I could find back in the Obama days when I first started loading for .40. I’d say the accuracy out of my Walther PPQ M2 in .40 at 15yds is reasonable

i

 

[lordpaxman]

+1 on the 5gr of 231. This was with a Ranier plated bullet (180gr) out of a P239.
.40 responds well with N320, N340, Titegroup, WST, WSF, Universal and CFE Pistol.

 

[ATLDave]

Very good stuff, love it, but for whatever reason I have never tried it in .40.

As mcb says, it [N320] is common fuel for Limited shooters in USPSA. If you're loading to a 165 PF floor, it will get you there easily and cleanly (and with tiny SD's) under 180's and 200's. And it's much softer than a lot of other powders.

 

[12Bravo20]

I didn't mention powder in my first post.

When I started out reloading pistol rounds it was for the .40 and I used Winchester 231 with the Berrys plated bullets. I have since switched to loading all my pistol rounds with Hodgdon Universal with good results. For the .40 I use 5.2Gr of Universal with the Berrys 180Gr bullets. My reloads are mostly for range/practice and I don't compete.

 

[gunlaw]

AA#5 is my go to powder for 40S&W. 6.4g of #5 with a 180g cast or plated has worked great for me.

 

[BC17A]

CFE Pistol and BE-86 are my two favorites in 40 cal with 180gn bullets. Both perform best when closer to max loads.

 

[Glockula]

I'd have to look in by data but a mild charge of Unique has been my go to. Unique and bullseye are the only two gun powders I have used. Bullseye meters well but I really only use it in .38 special any more.

Unique and 180 Berry's army go to. This is for a G23 gen3.